HighCVE-2020-1337

    Windows Print Spooler Elevation of Privilege Vulnerability (CVE-2020-1337)

    Published Sources: CVE.org

    What is affected, what to do

    An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists when the Windows Print Spooler service improperly allows arbitrary writing to the file system. An attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could run arbitrary code with elevated system privileges.

    An exploit is publicly available. The available sources name no fixed version. Check the vendor guidance in the references below.

    Affected
    • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 2004 gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server version 2004 gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1803 gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1809 gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server 2019 gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server 2019 (Server Core installation) gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1909 gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server, version 1909 (Server Core installation) gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1709 for 32-bit Systems gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1709 gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1903 for 32-bit Systems gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1903 for x64-based Systems gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1903 for ARM64-based Systems gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server, version 1903 (Server Core installation) gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1507 gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows 10 Version 1607 gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server 2016 gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server 2016 (Server Core installation) gte 10.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows 7 gte 6.1.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows 7 Service Pack 1 gte 6.1.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows 8.1 gte 6.3.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 2 gte 6.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 2 (Server Core installation) gte 6.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 Service Pack 1 gte 6.1.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 Service Pack 1 (Server Core installation) gte 6.0.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server 2012 gte 6.2.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server 2012 (Server Core installation) gte 6.2.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2 gte 6.3.0..*
    • Microsoft Windows Server 2012 R2 (Server Core installation) gte 6.3.0..*

    Not sure whether and how you are affected? Ask a question about this vulnerability

    Metrics

    7.8

    Priority

    XIEM Effective CVSS: highest available CVSS rating from NVD and vendor data.

    Source: Vendor (CNA), CVSS v3

    7.8

    CVSS v3

    Severity High on the scale from 0 to 10.

    Source: CVE.org

    14.2 %

    EPSS score

    Elevated — model estimates 10-50% exploitation likelihood.

    Source: FIRST EPSS, percentile 96.6

    Show all metrics
    Severity
    High
    Priority (0–325)

    The priority score is a consolidated metric that condenses several individual signals into a single, action-guiding ranking: technical severity (CVSS), exploitation likelihood (EPSS), known-exploited status (KEV) and the context of the affected asset. The aim is to answer the only truly important question in vulnerability management: what first?

    Read in glossary
    113.61 Methodology
    Exploit maturity

    An exploit is code or a technique that specifically uses a concrete vulnerability to force unintended behaviour — such as executing code or escalating privileges. It is the tool that turns a theoretical flaw into a practical attack.

    Read in glossary
    PoC (publicly reported)
    XIEM Effective CVSS

    XIEM® is the tiered managed-security operating model from NEOSEC and a registered trademark of NEOSEC GmbH. It extends classic SIEM — the central collection, normalisation and correlation of security-relevant events — with endpoint forensics, network visibility and deception technology, and consolidates them into three building tiers: Sentry, Orchestrate and Command.

    Read in glossary
    7.8 Methodology
    CVSS v3

    CVSS is the globally established, open standard for assessing the technical severity of a vulnerability on a scale from 0 to 10. It describes how easily a flaw can be exploited and what damage it can cause — but not how likely its actual exploitation is. CVSS and the complementary EPSS deliberately answer different questions.

    Read in glossary
    7.8
    EPSS score

    The EPSS score is the absolute model output for an individual vulnerability: the estimated probability of real-world exploitation within the next 30 days, expressed as a value between 0 and 1 (i.e. 0 % to 100 %). A score of 0.42 means „the model estimates a 42 % chance of real-world exploitation within 30 days“.

    Read in glossary
    14.2 %
    Elevated — model estimates 10-50% exploitation likelihood.
    EPSS percentile

    The EPSS percentile is the relative position of a vulnerability within all EPSS-scored CVEs, expressed as a value between 0 and 1. A percentile of 0.90 means „this CVE has a higher EPSS score than 90 % of all other scored CVEs“. Unlike the EPSS score, it is not a probability — but a positioning within a ranking.

    Read in glossary
    96.6
    Critical — this CVE ranks in the top fifth of all CVEs scored today (rank ≥ 80%).
    KEV status

    The KEV catalogue is a list maintained by the US authority CISA of vulnerabilities for which active exploitation in the wild has been confirmed. It answers not the question „how severe?“ but „is it already being attacked?“ — thereby sharply prioritising patching.

    Read in glossary
    —
    Published
    CISA assessment (SSVC)
    Exploitation: none known · not automatable · Technical impact: total
    Source: CISA Vulnrichment, as of 23 January 2024

    Detection rules

    No NEOSEC detection rule is available for this vulnerability yet.

    Classification under NIS2 and CRA

    Rule-based classification from exploitation status and severity. It does not replace a case-by-case assessment.

    NIS2

    NIS2 is EU Directive (EU) 2022/2555 to raise the level of cybersecurity across the Union. It substantially broadens obligations compared with the first NIS directive: more sectors, mandatory risk management, staged reporting duties and personal accountability of senior management.

    Read in glossary
    High technical severity: assess and remediate the vulnerability in vulnerability handling under Art. 21(2)(e) NIS2 and document the decision.
    CRA

    The CRA is EU Regulation (EU) 2024/2847 setting horizontal cybersecurity requirements for „products with digital elements“ — from industrial controllers and software to connected consumer devices. For the first time manufacturers must ensure security across the entire product lifecycle, handle vulnerabilities and provide security updates.

    Read in glossary
    From 11.12.2027, Annex I Part II CRA requires manufacturers of affected products with digital elements to handle vulnerabilities without delay and provide security updates.
    ISO/IEC 27001

    ISO/IEC 27001 is the internationally leading standard for an information security management system (ISMS). It describes a risk-based, process-oriented framework to systematically plan, implement, review and improve information security.

    Read in glossary
    Control A.8.8, management of technical vulnerabilities: assess relevance to your systems, plan remediation and keep evidence.

    Description

    An elevation of privilege vulnerability exists when the Windows Print Spooler service improperly allows arbitrary writing to the file system. An attacker who successfully exploited this vulnerability could run arbitrary code with elevated system privileges. An attacker could then install programs; view, change, or delete data; or create new accounts with full user rights. To exploit this vulnerability, an attacker would have to log on to an affected system and run a specially crafted script or application. The update addresses the vulnerability by correcting how the Windows Print Spooler Component writes to the file system.

    Source: NVD (NIST), cvelistv5

    Vendors and products

    Affected operating systems

    Affected operating systems
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 10 Version 1507—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 10 Version 1607—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 10 Version 17091709
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 10 Version 1709 for 32-bit Systems1709
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 10 Version 1803—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 10 Version 1809—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 10 Version 1903 for 32-bit Systems1903
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 10 Version 1903 for ARM64-based Systems1903
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 10 Version 1903 for x64-based Systems1903
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 10 Version 1909—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 10 Version 2004—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 7—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 7 Service Pack 1—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows 8.1—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows Server 2008 R2 Service Pack 1—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows Server 2008 R2 Service Pack 1 (Server Core installation)—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows Server 2008 Service Pack 2—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows Server 2008 Service Pack 2 (Server Core installation)—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows Server 2012—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows Server 2012 (Server Core installation)—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows Server 2012 R2—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows Server 2012 R2 (Server Core installation)—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows Server 2016—
    WindowsMicrosoftWindows Server 2016 (Server Core installation)—

    Public exploit references

    Publicly reported proof-of-concepts, exploit modules and detection templates for this vulnerability. NEOSEC links to the original sources only and does not provide any exploit code.

    Public exploit references
    Packet StormMicrosoft Windows Local Spooler Bypass (opens in a new tab)packetstormsecurity.comPoC (publicly reported)reported, not verified—
    Packet StormMicrosoft Spooler Local Privilege Elevation (opens in a new tab)packetstormsecurity.comPoC (publicly reported)reported, not verified—

    References & sources

    • portal.msrc.microsoft.comen-US/security-guidance/advisory/CVE-2020-1337x_refsource_MISC, Patch, Vendor advisory
    • packetstormsecurity.comfiles/160028/Microsoft-Windows-Local-Spooler-Bypass.htmlx_refsource_MISC, Exploit, Third-party advisory, Vulnerability database
    • packetstormsecurity.comfiles/160993/Microsoft-Spooler-Local-Privilege-Elevation.htmlx_refsource_MISC, Exploit, Third-party advisory, Vulnerability database
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    <a href="https://intel.neosec.eu/en/cve/CVE-2020-1337"><img src="https://intel.neosec.eu/badge/cve/CVE-2020-1337.svg?lang=en" alt="CVE-2020-1337 – NEOSEC Intel" height="20"></a>